This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Tourism spending up 10 per cent
17/11/2003
Tourism can become one of the leading drivers of
economic development in Scotland over the next decade,
Tourism Minister Frank McAveety told industry leaders
today.
One of the fastest growing parts of the Scottish
economy, the industry's performance over the last two years
can be sustained long-term so long as public and private
sectors work as a single team.
The Minister was speaking at the annual Scotland United
conference in Glasgow as the latest tourism figures, from
January to July this year, showed 10 per cent growth in
spending while UK figures overall have dropped by one per
cent.
Mr McAveety said:
"What a change from two years ago! This morning, I have
come here first and foremost to salute this industry - an
industry that has pulled itself out of the quagmire of 2001
and proved exactly what it can do. Yours is a remarkable
achievement by any standard. It underpins the statement
that this industry is one of the fastest growing parts of
the Scottish economy.
"It is the sheer hard work and professionalism of people
like you, of tourism operators across Scotland, that
provides me with the foundation for my belief in the
capacity of this industry to grow again. You have proved,
last year and this year, that you can not only take the
knocks and come back fighting. You have also proved that
you can take a long term view, that you are part of a
sustainable industry."
Mr McAveety told the conference that the Ministerial
Group on tourism is looking at the totality of public
sector funding for tourism, and ways in which support could
be better integrated. It is expected to report to Cabinet
in the near future, but the Minister offered some
indications of the Group's thinking.
"There is one over-arching question, not just for my
colleagues on the Ministerial Group but for all of us
committed to the prosperity of Scottish tourism. Can we
sustain the growth of the past two years? Can Scottish
tourism get back on to world tourism growth rates of 4 per
cent each year?
"If we can do that, tourism spend would increase hugely
- by perhaps half as much again in a decade.
"Scotland is a relatively small destination on the
global scene, competing against hundreds of other
destinations. But this country has a unique blend of assets
in its tourism portfolio, assets which like Scotland as a
country are enduring, dramatic and human. Tourism is
Scotland's first and everlasting industry. I believe that
if we set ourselves for it, there is no limit to what we
can do with this sector.
"Seamless public sector support is only a small part of
the new tourism dynamic. The public sector does have a role
to promote Scotland overseas and in the rest of the UK, to
help improve product quality, and to raise the level of
skills and training right across the sector. But if
Scotland is going to achieve the long-term vision of
substantial growth, then it is business people like you who
will make it happen.
"The last two years have shown what you are capable of.
It is now up to you to get out there, to lead the way to
growth, to enthuse your peers about the need for excellence
in everything they do. To work together to develop new
products and refresh existing ones so that Scotland becomes
much more than a must visit destination. It must also
become one to which every single one of our guests wants to
return.
"Do not think that by pressing for more business
leadership, I am signalling that the public sector will
withdraw its support for what you are doing.
"We fully recognise the need to support tourism business
people as they continue to grow this industry. We will
continue to invest in marketing Scotland, using every means
available. We will continue to invest in improving the
skills and training of the workforce - it is the warmth of
the welcome, the readiness to exceed expectations, that
will make Scotland a must return destination.
"We will also continue to work with VisitScotland to
find ways of improving quality across the board. As an
Executive we have committed ourselves to work with the
industry to find a way to guarantee standards of quality
and service. The existing VisitScotland quality assurance
scheme is well regarded. But we can't be complacent about
the need for better quality.
"It is not just the quality of accommodation that
matters, it is the quality of the tourism experience as a
whole. It must be the warmth of the welcome not only in our
hotels, but in our restaurants, our shops, and, dare I say
it, our buses and trains.
"It must be the willingness of staff at all levels to
sort out a visitor's problem, to stop it becoming a
disappointment and turn it into yet another example of good
service. And we have to find ways of measuring these
things, of routinely assessing them, and then of acting on
the feedback from our guests. The best businesses are doing
this already - it has to become the norm."
Scotland United is a partnership between the British
Hospitality Association, the Scottish Tourism Forum,
VisitScotland, Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and
Islands Enterprise.